Stoppage related to high inventory, new software implementation

A source told The Blade the plant last produced tires Saturday and is to resume work this Saturday. The source said the stoppage was related to high tire inventories and implementation of a software system.

Cooper has about 1,050 hourly employees at the plant. A company spokesman said Cooper generally doesn’t comment on specific production schedules.

In Cooper’s annual report filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission last week, the company said it anticipated taking down some production days at its U.S. facilities in the first quarter to implement the software.

Cooper also makes tires in Texarkana, Ark., and Tupelo, Miss. The company is headquartered in Findlay.

Cooper said it built extra tires in last year’s fourth quarter to offset lost production this year.

Company officials previously said last fall’s expiration of tariffs on Chinese-made tires resulted in fewer orders and higher tire inventories. In the annual report, Cooper said that was expected to affect sales and production in the first and possibly second quarter. However, Cooper said it still expects to meet or beat the industry’s unit volume growth in 2013.

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